Tours FC

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Tours FC
120pxTours FC logo
Full name Tours Football Club
Nickname(s) TFC
Founded 1919
Ground Stade de la Vallée du Cher,
Tours, France
(Capacity 13,500)
Chairman Frédéric Sebag
Manager Daniel Sanchez
League Championnat National
2006-07 Ligue 2, 20th
Team colours Team colours Team colours
Team colours
Team colours
 
Home colours
Team colours Team colours Team colours
Team colours
Team colours
 
Away colours

Tours Football Club (a.k.a. Tours FC) is a French football club based in Tours. It was founded in 1919. They play at the Stade de la Vallée du Cher.

The club had its best years in the eighties, playing four seasons in Ligue 1 (1980-1983 and 1984-1985).

Contents

[edit] Honours

[edit] Stadium

Tours FC - Paris Saint-Germain FC in a friendly match on 18 July 2007 (Tours won 1-0)
Tours FC - Paris Saint-Germain FC in a friendly match on 18 July 2007 (Tours won 1-0)

The club has been playing at the Stade de la Vallée du Cher since 1978.In 1979, its capacity was 22000 people but now just 13500. The stadium was built thanks to former mayor Jean Royer, as he wanted a decent venue for the club. Before, Tours FC used to play at the Stade de Grammont.

[edit] History

The team was founded in 1919 as AS Dock du Centre and quickly changed its name to AS du Centre in 1921.In 1951, the Docks du Centre withdrew from the club, which changed its name to FC Tours.The team enjoyed some successes thanks to player-coach Alfred Aston who lead the club to round of 64 of the Coupe de France.

FC Tours historical logo
FC Tours historical logo

The team got promoted in Division 1 in 1980 and signed best goalscorer Delio Onnis from AS Monaco FC, who helped the team for three years.But in 1983, the team was relegated. However, the team reached twice the semi-finals of the Coupe de France, in 1982[1] and 83[2], being eliminated twice by Paris SG.In 1984, the team won the Division 2 title and came back in Division 1 but was relegated after one season at the top level.Since 1985, Tours never managed to come back in Division 1.[3]

The club was relegated from Ligue 2, finishing last after a desastrous season, despite some individuality such as Cédric Collet, Mehdi Benatia or Michel Rodriguez. During the season, Albert Falette, manager for eight years was sacked. At the end of the season, the club released or sold almost all its players, including captain David Fleurival. The club only kept long-time goalkeeper Armand Raimbault and young prospect Rudy Wendling. The team for the 2007-2008 season has a new look, with the arrival of Diego Sebastian Gomez or Anthony Robic.

[edit] Colours and logos

Tours Coat of arms
Tours Coat of arms

The logo is inspired by the city coats of arms with three towers and Fleur-de-lis. It bears the club's motto "Turonorum civitas libera" which means in Latin "Free city of Turones", the celtic tribes which gave its name to Tours. The motto was found engraved on a rock which is now in the undergrounds of the Beaux Arts museum of the city.[4] The salamander is a reference to king François 1er.

[edit] Supporters

In France, Tours is not a town fond of football because of the lack of football tradition.Moreover, supporters were disappointed of the poor results of the club for years.However, the accession to Ligue 2 in 2006 has created some interest in the city and audiences in the stadium are gradually getting bigger. There are 3 groups of supporters:

  • Amicale des supporters
  • Kop 37
  • Supras Tours

[edit] Current squad

No. Position Player
1 Flag of France GK Denis Ribeiro
2 Flag of Guinea DF Ibrahima Sory Conte
4 Flag of France DF Xavier Tomas
5 Flag of France DF Laurent Koscielny
6 Flag of Mali MF David Coulibaly
7 Flag of France MF Anthony Robic
8 Flag of France MF Antony Lopez Peralta
9 Flag of Mali FW Cheick Oumar Dabo (On loan from Le Havre)
10 Flag of Argentina MF Diego Sebastian Gomez
11 Flag of France DF Walid Cherfa
13 Flag of Senegal DF Moktar Mangane
14 Flag of Senegal FW Amadou Diagouraga
No. Position Player
16 Flag of France GK Jérémy Deichelbohrer
18 Flag of Mali FW Sigamary Diarra
20 Flag of France MF Julien Esposito
21 Flag of France MF Rudy Wendling
22 Flag of France MF Fatih Atik
23 Flag of Guinea-Bissau MF Bocundji Ca (On loan from FC Nantes)
26 Flag of Brazil MF João Rodrigo Cordeiro
27 Flag of Mali FW Tenema N'Diaye
29 Flag of France DF Julien Deletraz
30 Flag of France GK Armand Raimbault
33 Flag of Mali FW Dramane Coulibaly

[5]

[edit] Famous past players

For a complete list of Tours FC players, see Category:Tours FC players

Name Nationality Position Tours career Appearances Goals Other
Aston, FredFred Aston Flag of France France FW 1951–1956 French international
Da Fonseca, OmarOmar Da Fonseca Flag of Argentina Argentina FW 1982–1985
Distin, SylvainSylvain Distin Flag of France France DF 1998–1999 Later played for major clubs
Eydelie, Jean-JacquesJean-Jacques Eydelie Flag of France France MF 1987–1988 Was involved in OM/VA bribery scandal, won the UEFA Champions League in 1993
Almirón, Sergio OmarSergio Omar Almirón Flag of Argentina Argentina DF Won the 1986 FIFA World Cup
Lacombe, GuyGuy Lacombe Flag of France France MF 1981–1983 Was integral to the team in Division 1
Madjer, RabahRabah Madjer Flag of Algeria Algeria MF 1985–1986 Algerian star who played 1982 and 1986 FIFA World Cup
Onnis, DelioDelio Onnis Flag of Argentina Argentina FW 1980–1983 64 Ligue 1 all-time goalscorer with 299 goals

[edit] Coaches

  • Flag of France Yvon Jublot :1969-1976
  • Flag of France Pierre Phelippon :1976-1981
  • Flag of the Netherlands Hennie Hollink :1981-1983
  • Flag of France Guy Briet: 1983-March 1985
  • Flag of France Serge Besnard : March 1985-1986
  • Flag of France Yvon Jublot : 1986-1988
  • Flag of France Jean Sérafin : 1988-1992
  • Flag of France Raymond Kéruzoré : 1992-1993
  • Flag of France Philippe Leroux : 1993-1995
  • Flag of France Christian Letard : 1995-March 1999
  • Flag of France Albert Falette : March 1999-2007
  • Flag of France Philippe Bizeul : 2007
  • Flag of France Daniel Sanchez : 2007-

[6]

[edit] References

[edit] External links